RP lands a poor 63rd on best countries list

Out of 100 countries, the Philippines ranked a poor 63rd in a Newsweek magazine study of the world’s best countries in terms of health, education, economy and politics. In Asia, the country was the third to the bottom in the Newsweek ranking in its latest edition.

Newsweek said the ranking, its first-ever, was made to “answer a question that is at once simple and incredibly complex—if you were born today, which country would provide you the very best opportunity to live a healthy, safe, reasonably prosperous, and upwardly mobile life?”

Based on the Newsweek study, the Philippines achieved its best ranking on the education category at 46th with a literacy rate of 92.7 percent and 15.5 years of average schooling.

The Philippines ranked 58th on the political environment, 64th on economic dynamism, 75th on the quality of life, and 66th on the health category.

Finland was the world’s best country based on the Newsweek study followed by Switzerland, Sweden, Australia and Luxembourg.

The highest ranking Asian country was Japan at 9th, South Korea at 15th and Singapore at 20th.

The Newsweek study showed that the country still has a long way to go even if the reform measures that the Aquino administration has committed will prosper. –Daily Tribune